"The Lord is My Shepherd"

“The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.” (Psalm 23:1-3 ESV)

Practically everyone knows some or all of Psalm 23. You have heard it at most funerals, and we often reach for it in our times of trouble. While this is true, many misunderstand the shepherd's principle in our salvation and daily lives.

When we look at the idea of the shepherd in biblical history, many great men like Moses and David were shepherds. The occupation of a shepherd is a lowly one. However, the responsibilities of a shepherd are great. They keep a flock of sheep together. They lead the sheep to ripe feeding grounds, and they protect the sheep, even with their life if necessary.  

Have you ever heard of the sheep protecting the shepherd? They cannot feed the shepherd, nor can they protect him, yet the sheep place all their faith in the shepherd's protection and will respond only to his voice. Sheep are not very bright, and without the shepherd in the field, they would not last the night.

There are still shepherds leading flocks today. Millions still lead the nomadic life of the shepherd, protecting vulnerable flock animals. Why is it then that so many Christians think they must do “something” to earn the love of Christ? Like the sheep, we can do nothing for an almighty God who needs neither feeding, caring, nor keeping; He is eternal. A misinformed person thinks they must “keep Christ” in their life. They believe that in their salvation, they will be unable to meet a standard of some sort,, which raises them to an acceptable level of devotion to satisfy God.

Like the Shepherd, it is Christ who keeps us; we do not “keep” Him. It is we who have faith in Him, who respond to His voice. In many churches today, people profess to know Christ when they have never truly opened their hearts to the living Word of God. There are even godless men who lead churches, a critical issue in today's society. People love them because their words are not those of God, but of men. If you are truly saved and know Jesus Christ, if you were to sit in one of these men’s sermons, you would most likely get up and leave because you would know this was false teaching. It is not the voice of your Shepherd.

Psalm 23 starts with “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.” As Christ is our shepherd, we have, like the sheep, placed all our faith in Him as our keeper, our protector. He gave up His life for you so that you could be redeemed and forgiven for your sins. In the resurrection, He defeated death not only for Himself, but for you. He protects you until you are finally called home to Him.

Moody told a story about a shepherd who gave each of his sheep a name. A man tested him to see whether the sheep would respond when the shepherd called them by name. As the shepherd called a sheep's name, the animal stopped eating and looked up at the man. He called it again, and the animal came to him. The man asked, How can you remember the names of each of these sheep? They all look the same. The man said they are not. Can you not see that one has a spot on its back? The toes on that one turn in. That one is missing a patch of wool on its head. The man was astonished, especially when he, instead of the shepherd, called the sheep by name and they did not respond. The shepherd said only the sick will react to a voice other than mine.

The shepherd identified the sheep by their flaws, much as Christ knows us by ours. He knows our hearts.  We like sick sheep, are infected with the sickness of sin, and we will respond to any voice that tells us what we think will make us feel better. In our salvation, we can hear and only respond to Christ, our true Shepherd. Like the shepherd in the story, Christ knows you personally; He told us every hair on our head is numbered. (Luke 12:7)  He knows you that intimately and cares for you that much.

Psalm 23 also tells us, “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.” When sheep lie down in the pasture, it is not by force; they are content. They are satisfied with their needs and relaxed knowing their protector is beside them. We, like the sheep, should be content with our needs, knowing the Lord provides all things to His people. God knows what we need before we need it. (Matthew 6:8) We should glorify our God and praise Him for His mercy, patience, and grace.

Sheep are very skittish and worrisome animals because they are so vulnerable. Like the shepherd leads the sheep, Christ calms us with His grace and peace, like the still waters calm the sheep.  When I have trouble sleeping, I often listen to the sounds of a running brook. It is like the voice of God, quieting my mind and reminding me of my Shepherd who restored my soul.

Salvation through Christ is free to those who can hear the voice of the Shepherd. You can do nothing to find faith; it is given by grace. Faith in Christ provides for our salvation, and Christ restores our souls. When you hear His voice, you will respond to no other again. As Peter said, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.” (John 6:68) Have you heard the words of eternal life?

Ask Christ to speak them to you, ask for grace so that you may have faith in Christ as the risen Son of God and find salvation in the Great Shepard—our time as sheep is short. Seek Christ now.

Grace and Peace.